The catbird and me

We have many catbirds in our yard, and they are one of our favorites. They are not shy of humans and quite friendly. When I see one I can't resist talking to it - even if it's only to say "hey catbird, hey catbird!"

The other day I was dismantling an old compost bin to make space for a new compost tumbler. I'd unfastened the nuts and bolts that hold the round plastic bin  together, when a catbird showed up. S/he was only a couple of feet away from me when he started foraging in the remaining compost for insects. I loved the way the bird was completely unafraid, at one point turning around and looking straight at me as if to say, thanks for uncovering all this good stuff for me! After noticing that when the catbird found particularly long juicy insects like centipedes, it would fly off with the insect in its beak, I started to think it was a female, heading over to the nest.